Variously lionized and vilified, entrepreneurs—and their commercial innovations—have had an enormous influence on the growth and prosperity of nations. In this sweeping history, leading economic historians explore the entrepreneur's role in society from antiquity to the present. From the medieval period to today, they chronicle enterprise in Mesopotamia and Neo-Babylon, take the reader through the Islamic Middle East, offer insights into the entrepreneurial history of Southeast and Central Asia, and describe the crucial role of the entrepreneur and innovation in Europe and the United States.

"Entrepreneurship has a long and varied history, and academics explore its evolution in The Invention of Enterprise.... The book collects essays from the editors and 18 other economists and historians. They look for commonalities in the societies that prospered—or failed to prosper—from entrepreneurial innovation, and they note that entrepreneurship is directly affected by the prevailing culture and religion."—BizEd Magazine